Weak Hands, Feeble Knees, & Gratitude

 Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble knees.

Say to those who are of a fearful heart, “Be strong, do not fear!

Here is your God. He will come with vengeance,
with terrible recompense. He will come and save you.” 

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,

    and the ears of the deaf shall be opened;

then the lame shall leap like a deer,
    and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.

                                   Isaiah 35:3-7 NRSVue

We are infernally early risers, not by choice but by the habit of many years. These days we get up rather grudgingly in the dark, make our morning coffee and sit by the gas fireplace chatting and listening to the news. It's cozy. 

Every other day I push myself to leave this comfort and get out the door to the gym, specifically the weight room where I toil alongside people half my age. At this stage of life I give special attention to arthritic joints and strengthening my grip. While I may ache a bit afterward it's supposedly helpful for geezers to do resistance training. 

I appreciated God's sense of humour yesterday because when I returned I gave attention to a passage from the prophet Isaiah as one of the daily scripture readings, a prayer imploring the Creator to strengthen hands and knees (I'm on it). The day before I had been at the optician (eyes of the blind!) and I figure that in 2025 I will consider some form of hearing assistance (ears of the deaf!). 

My leaping days are definitely over yet I'm grateful, if not joyful, that we're both still active and able to get out and appreciate the beauty of Creation described in the latter part of the psalm.We certainly don't take for granted that we can still do this with the grandchildren we adore. God is good!  Where did I put that Advil?...                

For waters shall break forth in the wilderness
    and streams in the desert;
 the burning sand shall become a pool
    and the thirsty ground springs of water;
the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp;
    the grass shall become reeds and rushes.

                 Isaiah 35:3-7 NRSVue